NEW ASPECTS of FLUID MECHANICS, HEAT TRANSFER and ENVIRONMENT

To optimise air preheater design for better performance

P.N.SAPKAL, P.R.BAVISKAR, M.J.SABLE, S.B.BARVE
Department Of Mechanical Engineering,
Rajarshi Shahu College of Engg, Pune.
University Of Pune
Tathwade- 411033, Maharashtra, India
(e-mail:prashantsapkal@gmail.com)
__________________________________________________________________________

This paper presents an approach for the optimisation of air preheater design with inline & staggered
tube arrangement. The poor performance of an air preheater in the modern power plants is one of the
main reason for higher unit heat rate & is responsible for deterioration in boiler efficiency. The main
problem of air preheater is the leakage of air to the flue gas side & thereby resulting in poor thermal
performance.The higher ash content in Indian coal also adds to the problems associated with tubular
air preheater. Air preheaters are designed to meet performance requirements with consideration of
highly influencing parameters viz. heat transfer, leakage and pressure drop. In the present work the
performance of tubular air preheater is evaluated with the help of CFD analysis for In-line &
staggered tube arrangement with the latter being more thermally efficient. The model can also be
used while selecting a new type of surface geometry for optimising the design of air preheater.
_________________________________________________________________________

1 Introduction: industrial waste gases as well as coal,oil and

Heating combustion air can raise
boiler efficiency about 1% for every 40F
(22°C) in temperature increase. The most
common way to preheat the air is with a heat
exchanger on the flue exhaust. With the
increasing price of fuel and technology
improvements, the size of a boiler that can be
economically equipped with a pre-heater
should become smaller. Although still a
technology most applicable to large boilers,
high energy prices will certainly motivate
innovative new applications for economical
combustion air pre-heaters on ever smaller
boilers.Air heaters can also use extraction
steam or other sources of energy depending
upon the particular application. These units
are usually employed to control air and gas
temperatures by preheating air entering the
main gas-air heaters.The hot air produced by
air heaters enhances combustion of all fuels
and is needed for drying and transporting the
fuel in pulverized coal-fired units.Industrial
units fire variety of fuels such as wood,
municipal refuse, sewage sludge and
natural gas. As a result, many air heater types
are used. In the small units tubular, plate and
cast iron heaters are widely used. [3]
Fuels fired on stoker grates, such as
bituminous coal, wood and refuse, don’t
require high air temperatures, therefore water
or steam coil air heaters can be used. Tubular
preheaters consist of straight tube bundles
which pass through the outlet ducting of the
boiler and open at each end outside of the
ducting. Inside the ducting, the hot furnace
gases pass around the preheater tubes,
transferring heat from the exhaust gas to the
air inside the preheater. Ambient air is forced
by a fan through ducting at one end of the
preheater tubes and at other end the heated air
from inside of the tubes emerges into another
set of ducting, which carries it to the boiler
furnace for combustion. Steam coil and water
coil recuperative air heaters are widely used
in utility steam generating plants to preheat
combustion air. Regenerative air heaters are
relatively compact and are the most widely
used type for combustion air pre heating in
electric utility steam generating plants. Air to

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 NEW ASPECTS of FLUID MECHANICS, HEAT TRANSFER and ENVIRONMENT
gas leakage can be controlled by cold-
presetting axial & radial seal plates to
minimize gaps at the hot operating conditions,
or using sacrificial material.[1]
2 Traditional strategies for Air
Preheater design
In a typical tubular air heater, energy
is transferred from the hot flue gas flowing
inside many thin walled tubes to the cold
combustion air flowing outside the tubes. The
unit consists of a nest of straight tubes that are
roll expanded or welded into tubesheets and
enclosed in a steel casing. The casing serves
as the enclosure for the air or gas passing
outside of the tubes and has both air and gas
inlet and outlet openings. In the vertical type
tubes are supported from either the upper or
lower tubesheet while the other (floating)
tubesheet is free to move as tubes expand
within the casing. An expansion joint between
the floating tubesheet and casing provides an
air/gas seal. Intermediate baffle plates parallel
to the tubesheets are frequently used to sepa-
rate the flow paths and eliminate tube
damaging flow induced vibration. Carbon
steel or low alloy corrosion resistant tube
materials are used in the tubes which range
from 38 to 102 mm in diameter and have wall
thicknesses of 1.24 -to 3.05 mm. Larger
diameter, heavier gauge tubes are used when
the potential for tube plugging and corrosion
exists. The most common flow arrangement is
counterflow with gas passing vertically
through the tubes and air passing horizontally
in one or more passes outside the tubes. A
variety of single and multiple gas and air path
arrangements are used to accommodate plant
layouts. Designs frequently include provisions
for cold air bypass or hot air recirculation to
control cold end corrosion and ash fouling.[3]
Pressure drop:
In recuperative air heaters, gas- or air-
side pressure drop arises from frictional
resistance to flow, inlet and exit shock losses
and losses in return bends between flow
passes. Pressure drop is proportional to the
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square of the mass flow rate.[5]
Leakage:
Recuperative units may begin
operation with essentially zero leakage, but
leakage occurs as time and thermal cycles
accumulate. With regular maintenance,
leakage can be kept below 3%. Approximate
air heater leakage can be determined based on
gas inlet and outlet oxygen (O2) analysis (dry
basis).[6]
Plugging and cleaning:
Plugging is the fouling and eventual
closing of heat transfer flow passages by gas-
entrained ash and corrosion products. It can
occur at the air heater hot end but is most
common at the cold end where ash particles
adhere to acid moistened surfaces. Plugging
increases air heater pressure drop and can
limit unit load when fan capacity is reached at
less than full load. In cases where low
pressure washing is not effective, high
pressure washing is done. Power plant op-
erators employ air heater washing specialists
and equipment with water jets at nozzle
pressure above 5000 psi (34.5 MPa). Special
care must be taken to avoid breaking and/or
flattening regenerative element plates.
Erosion:
Heat transfer surfaces and other air
heater parts can suffer erosion damage
through impact of high velocity, gas-entrained
ash particles. Erosion usually occurs near gas
inlets where velocities are highest. The
undesirable effects of erosion are structural
weakening, loss of heat transfer surface area
and perforation of components which can
cause air to gas or infiltration leakage.
Erosion rate is a function of velocity, gas
stream ash loading, physical nature of ash
particles and angle of particle impact. It is
controlled by reducing velocities, removing
erosive elements from the gas stream, or using
sacrificial material. In the design stage, air
heaters used with fuels containing highly
erosive ash can be sized to limit gas inlet
velocities to 50 ft/s (15 m/s). Inlet flues can
also be designed to evenly distribute gas over
the air heater inlet to eliminate local high
velocity areas. In existing problem air heaters,
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 NEW ASPECTS of FLUID MECHANICS, HEAT TRANSFER and ENVIRONMENT
flow distribution baffles may be installed to
eliminate local high velocities, sacrificial
materials such as abrasion resistant steel or
ceramics may be placed over critical areas, or
parts can be replaced with thicker materials
for longer life.
3 Performance analysis of Air
Preheater
The air heater is the last heat transfer
component before the stack. The air heater,
when sized properly, will have sufficient
surface to provide the required air temperature
to the fuel equipment (burners, pulverizers,
etc.) and lower the gas temperature to that
assumed in the combustion calculations. For
the air heater, the heat transfer rate is
determined as follows:
q = mg Cp (T1-T2) (1)
Where,
q= Heat transfer rate, Kcal/hr
mg= Mass flow rate of flue gas, kg/hr
Cp = Approximate mean specific heat of gas,
KJ/kg K
T1 = Gas temperature entering the air heater,
°C
T2 = Assumed air heater exit temperature, °C
For the air side, the temperature rise is:
T2’ = T1’ + q / ( ma Cp) (2)
Where,
T1’ = Air temperature entering air heater, °C
T2’ = Air temperature leaving air heater, °C
q= Heat transfer rate, Kcal/hr
ma = Mass flow rate of air, kg/hr
Cp = Approximate mean specific heat of air,
KJ/kg K
For cross flow arrangement , the log mean
temperature difference is determined as
follows:
LMTD =[ (T1-T2’) – (T2-T1’) ] x F / [ ln (T1-
T2’) / ln (T2-T1’) ]
In an air heater, gas & air film heat transfer
coefficients are approximately equal. Film
temperatures are approximated by the
following calculations.[4]
Gas : Tf = (T1+T2) /2 – LMTD/4
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Air : Tf = (T1’ + T2’) / 2 + LMTD/4 (5)
The gas mass flux is given by,
Gg = mg / Ag (6)
Where,
mg= Mass flow rate of flue gas, kg/hr
Ag = Flue gas flow area, m2
Gas Reynolds number is given by,
Re = K Re Gg (7)
Where,
K Re = Gas properties factor, m2 hr/ Kg
Gg = gas mass flux, Kg / m2 hr
Gas film heat transfer coefficient is the sum of
the convection heat transfer coefficient from
the longitudinal gas flow inside the air heater
tubes & a small gaseous radiation component
from within the tube. To properly account for
the fly ash layer inside the tubes, the gas side
heat transfer coefficients will be multiplied by
a cleanliness factor in the overall heat transfer
calculation.
hcg = h1’ x Fpp x Ft x Di/ Do (8)
Where,
hcg = The gas convection heat transfer
coefficient, Kcal/m2 hr °C
h1’= Basic convection velocity & geometry
factor for longitudinal flow
Fpp = Physical properties factor
Ft = Temperature factor
Di = Tube inside dia., mm
Do = Tube outside dia., mm
Gas side radiation heat transfer coefficient is
given by,
hrg = hr’ x K (9)
Where,
Hrg = The gas side radiation heat transfer
coefficient, Kcal/m2 hr °C
hr’ = Basic radiation heat transfer coefficient,
Kcal/m2 hr °C
K = Fuel factor
The air mass flux is calculated as,
Ga = ma / Aa (10)
(3) Where,
ma= Mass flow rate of air, kg/hr
Aa = Air flow area, m2
Air Reynolds number is given by,
Re = KRe Ga (11)
(4) Where,
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 NEW ASPECTS of FLUID MECHANICS, HEAT TRANSFER and ENVIRONMENT

K Re = Gas properties factor, m2 hr/ Kg [ FFR (hcg + hrg) + hca] (13)

Ga = Air mass flux, Kg / m2 hr
The crossflow convection heat transfer
coefficient for air is obtained from following The cleanliness or fouling resistance factor,
equation: FFR , is empirically derived from field test
hca = hc’ x Fpp x Fa x Fd (12) data; 0.9 is representative of bituminous coal.
Where, The total heat transfer rate for the air heater
hc’ = Basic convection velocity & geometry is:
factor for crossflow q = U x A x (LMTD) (14)
Fpp = Physical properties factor Where,
Fa = Arrangement factor for in-line tube banks A = Heating surface area in m2
Fd = Heat transfer depth factor Air heater exit gas temperature is calculated
Assuming negligible wall resistance, the to be:
overall heat transfer coefficient is: T 2 = T1-[ q / (mg x Cp) ] (15)
U = [ FFR (hcg + hrg) hca] /

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 NEW ASPECTS of FLUID MECHANICS, HEAT TRANSFER and ENVIRONMENT

Fig. 1 Various tubular air heater arrangements

Fig. 2 Approximate mean specific heat, Cp, of flue gas

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 NEW ASPECTS of FLUID MECHANICS, HEAT TRANSFER and ENVIRONMENT

Fig. 3 Effect of fuel, partial pressure on radiation heat transfer coefficient

Fig. 4 LMTD for selected heat exchanger configurations

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 NEW ASPECTS of FLUID MECHANICS, HEAT TRANSFER and ENVIRONMENT

4 CFD analysis of Air Preheater

Input parameter:

Flue gas inlet mass flow rate = 193.6 Kg/s

Flue gas inlet Temperature = 2850C
Back pressure at outlet = -154 mmWC
Gas composition (volume fractions)
H2O 11.81 %
N2 70.65 %
CO2 14.45 %
O2 3.09 %

Plane 1

Plane 2

`
Air
Preheater

Fig. 5 3-D Model & plane locations for duct before Air Preheater

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 NEW ASPECTS of FLUID MECHANICS, HEAT TRANSFER and ENVIRONMENT

Fig. 6 Velocity contours on plane 1 & recommended modifications

Fig. 7 Plane locations & velocity contours with addition of Internal baffles

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 NEW ASPECTS of FLUID MECHANICS, HEAT TRANSFER and ENVIRONMENT
Conclusion
In a recuperative heat exchanger, heat is
transferred continuously and directly through
stationary, solid heat transfer surfaces which
separate the hot flow stream from the cold
flow stream. The most common heat transfer
surfaces are tubes and parallel plates. In case
of tubular air heaters a variety of single and
multiple gas and air path arrangements can be
used to optimum performance. Modern
tubular air heaters can be shop assembled into
large, transportable modules. Erosion of air
preheater parts can be controlled by reducing
velocities, removing erosive elements from
the gas stream, or using sacrificial material.
The performance of tubular air preheater can
be evaluated with the help of CFD analysis
for In-line & staggered tube arrangement with
the latter being more thermally efficient. The
model can be used while selecting a new type
of surface geometry in order to have
uniformly distributed flow pattern for
optimising the design of air preheater.
ISSN: 1792-4596
References
For journal papers:
[1] Teodor Skiepko, Ramesh K. Shah , “A
comparison of rotary regenerator theory
and experimental results for an air
preheater for a thermal power plant”,
Rochester Institute of Technology,
Rochester,USA.
[2] T. Skiepko, “Effect of reduction in
seal clearances on leakages in a rotary
heat exchanger”, Heat recovery system
CHP 9 (6) (1989) 553-559.
[3] Rakesh Kumar & Sanjeev Jain ,
“Performance Evaluation of air pre heater
at off design condition”,Dept of Mech
Engg, IIT,New Delhi
For books:
[4] “Steam Book”, 2006 The Babcock &
Wilcox Company, pp.20-7.
[5] Donald Q.Kern, “Process Heat
Transfer”,2004 Tata McGraw-Hill
Publication, pp. 701.
[6] Rodney R. Gay, “Power Plant
Performance Monitoring”,2004, pp. 433.
69 ISBN: 978-960-474-215-8